Disclaimer: I don't own Alias, nor am I affiliated with ABC or JJ Abrams in any way. If I did own the show, don't you think it'd still be on-the-air? Haha! But I do own the original characters featured in this story and they aren't to be used or mentioned elsewhere without my permission.

Author's Note: The story takes place in a Season 3 setting; the CIA office is the same as the one in S3, but with a Season 5 feel, if you know what I mean. Sloane is still buried in Rambaldi's tomb in Mongolia, Sydney and Vaughn never had an intimate relationship--they're just friends--and that's pretty much it. Rated T for violence and future mature themes. I'll change the rating to M should I see fit. It'd be much easier if I could just rate the chapters, but that might give away the story. Either way, I hope you enjoy it!

1/

The sun had just set over Canberra, the warm air turning cool as the time changed. Hours passed, people moved, birds flew, cars drove. The clock struck midnight, some people turning in for the night, working late, but not at the Athens Club. Techno music could be heard two blocks away from the nightclub, the current song being Diggin' Your Scene by Smash Mouth. The red velvet carpet from the door to the side of the club held a line of people waiting to get inside.

Three people on a mission were already inside the club, spread about the floor. Sydney Bristow stood at the bar, drinking a cocktail, her eyes peeled for the target. Marcus Dixon was sitting on a leather chair on the upper level of the club, watching over the dance floor. I stood near a pillar closest to the emergency exit toward the back of the club. "Any sign of him?" Sydney asked.

"Not yet," Marshall replied. Sitting in the reconnaissance van parked on the street behind the nightclub, Marshall Flinkman typed quickly on his computer, scanning the area for oncoming vehicles, looking as if they were heading toward the club. Suddenly, he spotted two black cars closing in on Athens, both were Mercedes. "Wait. Two black Mercedes are coming close." The two cars stopped in front of the club, three men exiting the second, heading for the door. "He's here."

Sydney's eyes dashed to the main doors of the club the moment they opened. "I have a twenty on Hauser," she confirmed. My eyes scanned the club for the target and spotted him. "Copy that, Mountaineer."

"I've spotted him," Dixon added.

***

"Alexander Hauser," Jack Bristow spoke, his voice sounding as if he was bored with his job. "He's been on the CIA's list for quite some time. His business involves extortion, weapon sales, black market sales, it goes on. Tomorrow night, he's going to be off that list for good. Justin, Sydney, Dixon, you're going to Canberra. We've got word that Hauser will be going to the Athens Club around midnight to meet with a contact. Get his client list and bring him into custody."

My eyes narrowed as I wished Jack hadn't put me on the mission so soon. It's my second day at the CIA and I'm already being tasked in the field. I blinked and listened to Marshall's briefing on the operational technology. When he finished, I headed back to my desk and turned the computer on. Checking my email, I looked up and noticed someone standing next to me. "I heard you're going to Canberra," a voice said.

I turned to see Vaughn smiling at me. "Yeah, unfortunately."

"What do you mean?"

I lifted my hands off the keyboard and turned to face him. Michael Vaughn. My savior at CIA, really. Jack assigned him to be a guide of sorts to me for my first few weeks here. I know he wanted Sydney to do it, but apparently, Vaughn's used to stuff like this--being Sydney's handler when she was a double agent inside SD-6. In all honesty, I like Sydney, but I'd much prefer working with Michael.

"It's just--it's my second day and I'm already working in the field."

He laughed and sat on the desk, crossing his arms. "Well what did you expect? I mean, yeah it's your second day, but when the CIA's got a good field agent in their hands, of course they're going to use him."

"Good field agent? How would you--"

"I've got an instinct," he interrupted. I was about to speak until he raised a finger. "And you can ask around, my instincts haven't failed me yet."

I laughed and rubbed my forehead. "Okay, fine. Not like I have a choice to skip the mission or something."

"No, you don't. So do your best and keep your head in the game." He smiled and walked away, no doubt heading to his own desk to do whatever he did during the day.

***

Sydney made her way toward Hauser, keeping her eye on his two bodyguards. Her gold sunglasses with red lenses allowed her to see any weapons through a person's clothing, a Marshall Flinkman creation. She glanced at the two and spotted a loaded Glock 17 on both of them. She stopped when she noticed the two armed personnel migrate away from Hauser and realized he must have told them to keep watch from assigned positions.

I watched as Hauser climbed the stairs to the upper level of the club and down the hallway north of Dixon's location. "Proceeding to take out the first bodyguard," Sydney spoke.

"I'm on the second," I replied.

Walking around the club, I spotted the second guard standing near the bathrooms, his hands folded in front of him. Standing behind him, I quickly elbowed him in his side, ducking to avoid a punch to my face. Twisting his arm, I pushed him into the men's room, quickly disarming him as I caught a glimpse of his handgun. Elbowing him in the face, he lost consciousness and I contacted Sydney. "Second guard's out."

"Copy that, so is the first."

I met Sydney at the stairs and followed her to the meeting room of Hauser and his contact. Dixon joined us and kicked the door down when we got there. Entering the room, we stopped short when we saw Hauser and his contact, aiming guns at the three of us.

***

"Hey Sydney," I called after her. She stopped and turned, heading my way. She smiled when she arrived at my desk.

"Hey Justin, what's up?"

"Not much. Listen, I was thinking about the mission and…well, how often do things go wrong?"

She crossed her arms and sat on the desk like Vaughn had. "Are you nervous?" I nodded faintly. "Good. That's normal. Look, I understand your reluctance to do this. It's your first mission, but trust me, it'll be fine. This is an incredibly easy one considering missions I've done in the past, but it's difficulty level shouldn't deter your mind from the task at hand."

"I understand. In other words, I shouldn't let my guard down just because you told me it's easy?"

"Right," she smiled. "Always stay two steps ahead of the game. There's always a margin for error, and in the event that something goes wrong, never panic. You might risk the safety of yourself and your fellow agents. But like I said, don't think too much about it. Just focus and try your hardest."

Basically what Vaughn told me. It's not like I didn't believe him, but a second opinion is always good. I nodded and watched as Sydney walked away. Sighing, I turned back to the computer and continued typing.

***

I exhaled at the sight of Hauser and his contact with the guns on us. The other man with him was blonde, his eyes a dark blue. He wore a black pinstripe suit with a black shirt, buttoned up halfway, his chest showing a little. "Sark," Sydney said, sounding annoyed.

"Miss Bristow. A pleasure to see you again," he replied, his English accent suiting him perfectly. "Dixon, you as well." His eyes locked onto mine. "And you must be Mr. Hawke, the latest addition to the Central Intelligence team."

I wanted to smile, the guy was good looking. Instead, I maintained my emotionless expression and looked at Sydney, my eyes looking back to Sark when he spoke again. "I'll tell you now, if you're planning to arrest me, I won't make it easy on you."

"Don't you mean 'us'?" Hauser asked, still focused on us.

"No. You're just a complication."

Suddenly, Sark turned his gun on Hauser and shot him twice in the back. The three of us jumped in shock, our eyes darting from the late Alexander to his British assassin. The gun in Sark's hand was aimed at us again. He pulled out a second gun and shot out the glass of the window behind him. "It was a pleasure to see you again, and especially to meet you, Mr. Hawke." Before we could stop him, he dropped from the window and drove off in a dark convertible.

***

"Sark killed Hauser and took off with the client list," Sydney informed her father.

Jack's face was emotionless. He simply nodded and said we'd have another chance. I sat at my desk and submitted my report. Vaughn came and sat on the desk. "I heard about the mission," he smiled.

"You did?"

He nodded. "Yep. Good work, I'm proud."

I smiled, no doubt my cheeks red. "Thanks Michael."

"No problem. I'll be at my desk if you need me."

I wonder if I make it obvious that I like him. I mean, I try not to and I don't think I do, but…well I hope I don't. I think I fell in love with Vaughn the first time I met him. I never believed in love at first sight until I laid eyes on him. I wish I knew more about him.

I watched him as he headed back to his desk, sighing as I turned back to my computer. The rest of the day seemed to drag on. I headed to my car, unlocking and opening the door to the dark red Toyota Prius.

Driving home, I stopped by Sydney's house, hoping she was there. I spotted her car in the driveway and pulled beside it. Heading to the door, I rang the doorbell and waited. Turning, I watched as a few people jogged down the street. I heard the door unlock and turned to see Sydney smiling. "Hey Justin, what's up?"

"Not much, but do you have a minute?"

"Yeah, sure, come on in."

I entered her house, taking a seat on the couch. She brewed some coffee and sat next to me. "What's on your mind?"

I hesitated for a second, but gained confidence to ask, "What can you tell me about Michael Vaughn?"

She raised an eyebrow. "What do you want to know?"

"Well, he seems like an interesting person, to say the least. I have to work with him, but I don't know much about him."

She smiled and cleared her throat. "Well, as I'm sure you know, Vaughn's a very nice guy. He's thoughtful, he's kind, but don't let that fool you. When it comes to missions, he's completely focused on the task at hand."

"That doesn't surprise me," I laughed.

She continued to talk about him, answering any questions I had, but keeping the line clear not to tell me anything that he might not want me knowing. She stopped in mid-speech and looked at me carefully. "Is there something wrong?"

"No, why do you ask?"

She hesitated for a minute. "Justin, we've been friends for two years. If there's something going on, you know you can trust me, right?"

"Of course, Syd. I know that, and thanks."

She nodded and sipped her coffee. I finished mine a few minutes before. She knew. I knew it. I could tell. Either she knew or she suspected something. Or maybe she was trying to make it seem like that so I'd come out with it. I mentally slapped myself in the face and cleared my throat.

"Well, I ought to head home. Thanks again, Sydney."

"No problem," she said, walking me to the door. "See you tomorrow."

The drive home went by quickly, thank God. I was so tired, I just wanted to collapse. Pulling into the driveway, I unlocked the front door and put the lights on, closing and locking the door behind me. Heading to the bedroom, I undressed and walked into the bathroom. Running the water, I stepped into the shower and leaned against the wall, the soothing hot water relaxing my muscles.

When I finished, I pulled on a pair of black and white basketball shorts and a white t-shirt. Grabbing a glass from the cabinet, I drank some water and leaned against the counter. I sighed and set the glass down. The phone was right there, right next to the couch. I crossed the room and sat on the tan leather couch and turned on the 46" plasma screen television. Flipping through the channels, I settled on a football game and set the remote down. I couldn't even concentrate on the TV. I picked up the cordless phone and held it in my hands. All I had to do was press the green button and dial the number. That's it, and I couldn't even do that.

Suddenly, the phone rang and made me jump. I pressed the button and put it to my ear. "Hello?"

It was him. "Hey Justin, it's Michael."

"Oh, hey what's up?"

"Nothing. Listen, I'm still at the office, but I'm leaving in a little while and when I do, I was wondering if you wanted to hang out, maybe get to know each other better."

I smiled from ear to ear. "Yeah, that'd be nice. Um, my house?"

"Yeah sure. I'll be there around 7ish."

"All right, see you then."

"Okay, bye."

Hanging up, I laughed to myself and headed to my bedroom. Changing into dark blue jeans, I put on a long sleeved white shirt and a black shirt over it. Pulling the sleeves up, I put on socks and white sneakers and headed back to the living room. Looking at the clock, it read 6:48pm.

The doorbell rang at exactly 7:09pm. I crossed the room to the front door and opened it. There he was. Standing there right in front of me, wearing light blue jeans, a white shirt, and a dark blue jacket. "You changed," I said, pointing out the obvious.

"Yeah," he laughed, "I thought a business suit would be too formal."

I smiled and stepped aside, "Come in." I followed him into the living room and stood near the kitchen as he sat on the couch. "You want anything?"

"Do you have coffee?"

"Yeah, how do you take it?"

"Cream, two sugars."

I made a cup for the two of us and sat next to him, handing him his. "So, what do you want to know about me?"

"I'm not sure," he laughed, "The important things, I guess. We'll be working together for awhile, so I thought it best that we actually knew each other."

If only he knew how much I knew about him already. Part of me wanted to tell him what I knew, but I didn't want to come off as abrasive. I just sat back and told him what he wanted to know. Hours passed and the conversation switched from friendly to personal.

He could tell something was up with me. "What's the matter?" he asked.

I looked into his hazel eyes, his into mine and I knew. "Michael…there's something you should know."

Chapter One is complete! I hope you enjoyed reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it--however, I think I'll enjoy writing Chapter Two more, which by the way is on it's way. Let me know what you thought by leaving a review!